Mariano Rivera makes hitters fret, makes them adjust and makes them ponder how close they are to having their bat splintered by his cut fastball. Rivera is so superb and so dominant that he and his trusty cutter can invade a batter's cranium before he ever throws a pitch. Some very strong hitters have ambled to the plate wondering how they can conquer the mighty Rivera.

In Game 7 of the 2001 World Series, Luis Gonzalez was one of those hitters. With the Yankees and the Diamondbacks tied, 2-2, and the bases loaded in the ninth inning, Gonzalez knew he needed to do something, anything, different against Rivera. So Gonzalez moved his hands up the handle of the bat and choked up for the first time all season.

"I had 140-something R.B.I. that season and I'd hit 57 homers and I was choking